Hockey official and Belmlont secondary student Matt Williams stands in front of a fundraising board he’s set up in the school to keep track of moneys raised for cancer research. Bingo for Bucks runs until Oct. 31.

Hockey ref sets unique goals in Langford

Pink on your skate laces or stick tape is not a sign of weakness, but a definite sign of strength of character.

For some junior hockey players on the West Shore, wearing pink is also a show of support for Matt Williams and his “Bingos for Bucks” campaign, which aims to raise funds for cancer research.

Williams, a Grade 12 student at Belmont secondary, is hoping every student at the school donates $1 to the campaign, which runs until the end of October.

A cancer survivor who was diagnosed with leukemia in 2009, Williams is in remission now, but knows cancer touches almost everyone.

“This was something easy for me to get behind,” he said. “I think all of us on the board with names in pink are affected by a friend or family member.”

Williams is a junior hockey official and with his connections in junior and minor hockey, he is asking forwards and defencemen to donate $10 for every goal or assist. His goal is to raise $1,258 from the school students. With the hockey players he has already raised around $300. It’s a tough grind though.

“We’re making a push here,” he said. “I’ll keep pushing, I set a goal and there is still 10 days to reach it.”

He said many students don’t have any extra cash, so he encourages them to go out to the games and support and cheer the players on.

All of the money raised will go to the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.

When Williams graduates he hopes to go into criminology and become a police officer, or more specifically a member of the emergency response team for the RCMP.